Nancy Pelosi appears to endorse a candidate for California governor after Kamala Harris bows out
'We have many great candidates, one in particular, Eleni Tsakopoulos, whom I support,' Pelosi said, referring to Kounalakis, a fellow San Franciscan, by her maiden name. Pelosi, who has raised more than $1 billion for Democrats over the past two decades. Kounalakis, her Pacific Heights neighbor, is the daughter of Sacramento developer Angelo Tsakopoulos, a longtime major Democratic donor who gave nearly $5 million to an independent committee supporting his daughter in her 2018 run for lieutenant governor. She is expected to be one of the best-funded candidates in the crowded field.
A Pelosi spokesman declined to comment on the record about whether Pelosi's comments constituted an official endorsement.
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Newsweek
21 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Alligator Alcatraz Hunger Strike: What to Know
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Detainees at the controversial immigration facility known as "Alligator Alcatraz" have reportedly been on a hunger strike for more than 10 days, protesting conditions at the center. Newsweek has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' office for comment via email on Saturday. Why It Matters There have been allegations of medical neglect, verbal abuse, and poor conditions inside the Everglades immigration facility, and human rights advocates have repeatedly raised concerns about the center. Alligator Alcatraz was quickly created and holds an estimated 1,000 beds. The bunkbeds are stacked together in wire-fenced cages. The remote facility is expected to cost Florida about $450 million annually to operate. The center is part of the Trump administration's effort to crackdown on illegal immigration. President Donald Trump has vowed to carry out the largest mass deportation in U.S. history, an initiative that has seen an intensification of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids and arrests across the country, including people with valid visas and documentation. What To Know Several detainees at the relatively new facility are refusing food as part of a hunger strike to protest conditions inside the center, with reports noting the strike has entered its 11th day. Pedro Lorenzo Concepcion one of the detainees, was hospitalized during the strike, and told El Pais in a call from inside the facility, "I feel weak, with a lot of heartburn." He told the outlet that he has refused to eat since July 22. He continued: "I don't want food, I refuse any treatment. I didn't even ask to be taken to the hospital, because I'm fighting for my family and all Cubans, and I belong where my people are, in prison, suffering the same hardship they are." His wife, Daimarys Hernández, has told the outlet and NBC that she is afraid he may die in custody or be deported back to Cuba alone. Lorenzo Concepcion, who NBC identified as Pedro Hernández, came to the U.S. from Cuba nearly two decades ago, in 2006. He was detained on July 8 after showing up at an ICE appointment in Miramar, Florida. So far this year, there have been 10 confirmed deaths in ICE detention, per the agency. "These deaths are clearly attributable to the Trump administration's increased and aggressive detention policies, and I have no doubt that when more complete investigations take place, it will likely provide information that these deaths were likely preventable," Eunice Cho, senior staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) National Prison Project, told Newsweek in July. Democratic leaders and human rights activists have called out the center over reported conditions. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has repeatedly defended the center and has promoted the facility as a model for other states as a way to increase ICE detention capacity. "We need to double our capacity in detention beds because we need to facilitate getting people out of this country as fast as possible," Noem said in July during a press conference. ICE is struggling with limited capacity and resources to fulfill its mission of millions of deportations. President Donald Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and others, tour "Alligator Alcatraz," a new migrant detention facility at Dade-Collier Training and Transition facility, on July 1 in Ochopee, Florida. President Donald Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and others, tour "Alligator Alcatraz," a new migrant detention facility at Dade-Collier Training and Transition facility, on July 1 in Ochopee, Florida. AP Photo/Evan Vucci What People Are Saying Thomas Kennedy, a policy analyst and consultant at the Florida Immigration Coalition, wrote in an X post Saturday: "People detained at Alligator Alcatraz have had to remove fecal matter from the toilets with their bare hands because the toilets lose pressure due to lack of water. That's the sort of depraved conditions that drove those in detention there to ten days of hunger strike so far." Derrick Evans, former member of the West Virginia House and pardoned January 6, 2021 Capitol riot participant, wrote in an X post: "I'm glad the illegals at Alligator Alcatraz are on a hunger strike. Just saves the tax payers money by not having to feed them. I have no sympathy for any of them." Representative Maxwell Alejandro Frost, a Florida Democrat, wrote in an X post about the center on Saturday: "438 veterans in Florida are taking a stand against the unconstitutional and illegal use of our military for immigration enforcement. I stand with them. We should be defending our nation, not using Marines to cage people." Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said in a July 25 X post: "We stood up Alligator Alcatraz in just eight days as a centralized facility for deportation staging. The facility has a two-mile runway that allows federal military aircraft to transport illegal aliens out of the country, right on site. These deportation flights operated by DHS are underway, and we will support efforts to increase cadence of the flights so that the number of illegal aliens deported keeps increasing." What Happens Next? It remains unclear when the hunger strike will end. In late July, deportation flights from the facility began and are expected to continue. Civil rights groups, including the ACLU, have filed lawsuits alleging "inhuman conditions" and lack of legal counsel at the center.
Politico
21 minutes ago
- Politico
How top Democrats are already gearing up for 2028 online
List-building signals candidates' ambitions for higher office, particularly with online fundraising a key pillar of successful Democratic campaigns over the past decade. By purchasing or renting Democratic donors' contact information, candidates can more effectively target potential supporters, introduce themselves to a national audience and convert some of those donors into their own. 'You want to build up a strong email and text list for a few reasons — it'll increase your name ID, you can raise money for other candidates, and then raise money for yourself,' said Mike Nellis, a Democratic digital consultant. 'If you're not spending money on growing the biggest possible audience for yourself right now, then you're being foolish. Frankly, all of them could be spending more money on it.' Leadership PACs also allow political figures in blue states to steer money to competitive races, including by directly donating to vulnerable candidates or state parties, or by fundraising on their behalf. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, for example, has long tapped his extensive email and text lists to raise money for other candidates. Such efforts help blue-state Democrats build relationships across the country and engender goodwill within the party. 'Investing in your leadership PAC money now is critical because you have to build your fundraising operation now.' —Pete Giangreco, Democratic consultant The PACs also run ads aimed at recruiting online backers. Newsom's leadership PAC, Campaign for Democracy, invested another $1.5 million in digital ads in late June, according to its filing. The PAC, which launched in 2023 with a major transfer from Newsom's gubernatorial campaign, reported $4.4 million cash on hand at the end of June. Digital advertising helps candidates expand their name recognition and recruit donors outside their home states. 'It's the small donations from folks like you that have the greatest impact,' read one ad that Beshear's PAC, In This Together, ran on Facebook in June. 'Your support helps us do what matters most: elect decent, compassionate leaders in Kentucky and nationwide.' Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear ran digital ads this year that focused on his home state but also reached a national audience. | AP Beshear's group, which has $496,000 cash on hand, spent $30,000 on digital advertising through the end of June, according to its FEC report. While Beshear's PAC has run Facebook ads that predominantly target his home state of Kentucky , it has also reached an audience across the country, according to data from Meta's digital ad library. Similarly, Facebook ads from Whitmer's group, Fight Like Hell PAC, have predominantly targeted Michigan users — but with some national promotion, too. Hers has $2.6 million cash on hand.
Business Insider
21 minutes ago
- Business Insider
British Minister Badenoch's ‘Not Nigerian' remark sparks widespread backlash
A recent statement by British Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch declaring that she no longer considers herself Nigerian has drawn sharp criticism from both the Nigerian diaspora and political figures. Kemi Badenoch stated she no longer considers herself Nigerian, expressing full identification with the UK. Her comments sparked criticism from the Nigerian diaspora and political figures, highlighting the sensitivity of national identity. The debate raises broader issues about diaspora identity, cultural heritage, and perceptions of national belonging. Speaking on the Rosebud Podcast with Gyles Brandreth, Badenoch revealed that she hasn't renewed her Nigerian passport in over 20 years and now fully identifies with the United Kingdom, where she lives with her family. 'I'm Nigerian through ancestry, by birth, despite not being born there because of my parents, but by identity I'm not really, ' she said, adding that, 'I know the country very well, I have a lot of family there, and I am very interested in what happens there.' The comment struck a nerve in Nigeria, where national identity and diaspora pride remain deeply significant especially when expressed by someone of Nigerian heritage in such a prominent international role. As a beneficiary of automatic British citizenship by birth, Badenoch noted that she was one of the last individuals to receive this privilege before the policy was scrapped in 1981. For her, discovering her British citizenship was a game-changer. ' Home is where my now family is, and my now family is my children, it's my husband and my brother and his children, in-laws ' she emphasized, also considering the British Conservative party as an integral part of her extended family. Kemi Badenoch highlighted that her decision to relocate to the UK as a teenager was driven by her parents' concerns about Nigeria's unstable political and economic climate. "I think the reason I came back here was actually a very sad one, and it was that my parents thought: 'There's no future for you in this country,'" she said. Her remarks, including past claims about difficulty transmitting Nigerian citizenship to her children, have reignited debate over national identity, diaspora disconnection, and the cultural politics of belonging. Former Senator Shehu Sani Leads Political Firestorm The backlash to Kemi Badenoch's remarks intensified as prominent Nigerian voices, including former Senator Shehu Sani, publicly condemned her comments. 'If she has rejected Nigeria, she should at least return our name, ' Sani wrote on social media, referring to her Yoruba first name, Kemi. He questioned why Badenoch, who claimed she cannot transmit Nigerian citizenship to her children, would seek rights from a country she has disavowed. Badenoch made the citizenship claim during an earlier CNN interview, remarks that have since been widely countered. Sani responded sharply: ' Why should Kemi Badenoch be bothered about getting Nigerian citizenship for her offspring from a country she rebuked and rejected? She should just enjoy her adopted home and leave us alone in our father's home. ' In further posts, he accused Badenoch of projecting disdain for her heritage while benefiting from its cultural visibility. He also countered her claim about citizenship, noting that Nigeria's constitution does not bar women from passing on nationality to their children. He doubled down in subsequent posts, accusing Badenoch of projecting disdain for her heritage while benefitting from its visibility. ' Enjoy your adopted home and leave Nigeria alone, ' he wrote, reflecting frustration over her repeated efforts to distance herself from the country of her ancestry. Sani also challenged her claim about citizenship, noting that Nigeria's constitution does not discriminate against women in passing on nationality. You're right to question that phrasing. Since your original sentence is in the past tense, the refined version should maintain that. Here's the corrected version, keeping your tense and structure: Presidential aide, Dada Olusegun, also criticised the United Kingdom's Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch, over her comments on Nigerian citizenship. Reacting to the claim in a post via his X handle, Olusegun accused Badenoch of deliberately misrepresenting Nigeria's laws. ' Aunty @KemiBadenoch, why do you continue to lie against your motherland? Why this continuous, dangerous, and desperate attempt to malign Nigeria? ' he wrote. He added: 'Chapter 3, Section 25(1)(c) of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution states that if the Nigerian woman is a citizen by birth, her children, whether born in Nigeria or abroad, are Nigerian citizens by descent, automatically under Section 25 of the Constitution. 'This holds regardless of the father's nationality. You do not need to apply for registration or naturalisation for her child to be a citizen. ' Legal Pushback Prominent human rights lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) echoed this constitutional clarification. According to Section 25 of Nigeria's 1999 Constitution, a child born to either a Nigerian father or mother is entitled to citizenship by birth. ' Badenoch's claim that her children can't obtain Nigerian citizenship because she's a woman is legally incorrect and misleading,' Falana said in a televised interview. He argued that such a statement reflects ignorance of Nigerian law and risks misinforming the public, especially those in the diaspora. A Divisive Pattern This is not the first time Badenoch has come under fire for comments on race, identity, or heritage. Her positions on issues ranging from colonialism to Black Lives Matter have frequently drawn criticism for catering to right-wing audiences. Her latest remarks have only deepened the divide. As diaspora voices grow louder and Nigerian officials demand greater respect from their global descendants, Badenoch faces increasing scrutiny, not only over what she said, but why she felt the need to say it at all.
